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Click it, Don’t Risk it Campaign

Montana’s Highway Patrol (MPH) is joining all other local law enforcement agencies in the 2014 Click it, Don’t Risk it seat belt enforcement mobilization period to encourage all Montanan’s to buckle up. Additional patrols will be on the road starting May 19 through June 1 focusing on proper seat belt use for all passengers during this high travel time. The national campaign is taking place in all communities, whether motorists live in rural or urban areas and whether it is day or nighttime.

“Too many drivers and passengers on the road are not wearing their seat belts, and it often ends in tragedy,” said MPH Sergeant Randy Owens. “Our goal is to save lives, so MHP and local law enforcement will be putting an extra emphasis on enforcing Montana’s seat belt and child safety seat laws.”

The good news is that in 2012, seat belts saved over 12,000 people who were involved in crashes. By keeping them in the “safety cage of the vehicle,” severe injury or the possibility of being thrown from the vehicle was prevented. “In Lake County, preliminary numbers show 71 percent of those who died in crashes on our roads so far this year were not wearing seat belts, this is a nice decrease from last year, but there is room for improvement” said Mr. Owens. Seat belt use saves thousands of lives across America each year and Law Enforcement is helping to spread the word.

For more information about the importance of child safety seats and seat belt use, please visit http://buckleup.mt.gov/ and http://plan2live.mt.gov. Certified child passenger safety technicians are available through most county health departments who can make sure your child car seat is installed securely and answer any questions you may have.